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More Schools Replace Columbus Day With Indigenous Peoples Day

The second Monday in October is Columbus Day—a federal holiday since the 1930s that commemorates Christopher Columbus' four voyages from Spain to the Americas.

But in more school districts, cities, and states, Columbus Day is being replaced by Indigenous Peoples Day, a holiday commemorating Native American people and culture.

The Rochester, Plattsburgh, and Niagara-Wheatfield school districts in New York and Amherst schools in Massachusetts are among the districts where school boards voted to change the celebration this year. They're following the lead of school districts like Seattle, which began celebrating Indigenous Peoples Day in 2014.

Columbus' role in history and history classrooms has long been controversial. In 1992, the 500th anniversary of one of Columbus' voyages, Education Week reported on the tension that social studies teachers felt as they strove to acknowledge the historical significance of Columbus' voyages and the devastating impact of colonialism on the civilizations and people who were in America before his arrival.

The move to celebrate indigenous peoples' history, and clarify the role of Christopher Columbus, started at a United Nations Conference in 1977 and was later taken up by activists in state and city governments. The City of Berkeley declared Indigenous Peoples Day in 1992, the 500th anniversary of one of Columbus' voyages. Since then, other governments have followed suit. This year alone, several cities and states, including Denver, Phoenix, Vermont, and Alaska, have also started marking Indigenous Peoples Day.

Leo Killsback, an assistant professor of American Indian Studies at Arizona State University and a citizen of the Northern Cheyenne Nation, told CNN that the new holiday "acknowledges that indigenous peoples and their voices are important in today's conversations."

Outside of Columbus Day, more states are looking at how to engage Native American students and incorporate their history and culture in schools. The High Country News recently reported on a new effort to bring culturally relevant education to Native American students in New Mexico. Washington State and Montana are also home to statewide efforts to teach the history of Native Americans in public schools.

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